After 11 seasons on the air, The Walking Dead signed off with its emotional series finale last fall, marking the end of an era. While its flagship program may be done, the zombie-centric franchise is far from over. In fact, it's flourishing and The Walking Dead has a number of spinoffs on the way. One of those is the highly-anticipated Rick and Michonne series starring Andrew Lincoln and Danai Gurira in their respective, beloved roles. The series is currently in the early days of production, and we've now learned that the two lead actors will be joined by a Lucifer alum!
Lesley-Ann Brandt is best known for her role as the demon Maze, Lucifer’s right-hand demon and a bounty hunter on the Fox's (and later Netflix's) supernatural drama. Now, Brandt is going to be involved with some other kinds of creatures, as she’s signed on to play the recurring role of Pearl Thorne on the upcoming Walking Dead spinoff, according to Deadline. Details about Thorne are unknown at this time, so it’s hard to say if she'll end up serving as an ally or an enemy to Rick and Michonne.
Pearl will mark Lesley-Ann Brandt's first major TV role since Lucifer ended in 2021. She’s also starred on The Librarians, Single Ladies, CSI: NY, and Spartacus as well as the TV movie Zombie Apocalypse, funny enough. With so much time left before the limited series premieres, fans are sure to spending plenty of time speculating about Pearl and how she comes into the lead heroes' orbit. But whatever is planned for the newcomer though, I'm confident that Brandt will crush it.
The untitled WD spinoff will follow Rick and Michonne after their respective final appearances on the main show, and their romance will be a key component of the six-episode series. And as the synopsis shared by the trade insinuates, the pair are going to have to ask themselves some tough, existential questions as they fight a new war. Production recently kicked off in New Jersey, so it’s likely that additional casting information could drop as work progresses.
Little by little, fans have been learning news about other upcoming Walking Dead series. There's a good chance that the the Daryl Dixon spinoff is will find a place on the 2023 TV schedule if all things continue move along as planned for the Norman Reedus-led series. Meanwhile, Dead City has yet to have an official release date announced and, all the while, photos from the Negan and Maggie spinoff have fans excited.
Andrew Lincoln and Dania Gurira's show is arguably the most anticipated, though and I can't wait to see what's in store for their characters and now Lesley-Ann Brandt's. Let's hope the show lives up to the hype!
A premiere date has yet to be announced for the Rick and Michonne spinoff, but it's been confirmed that it'll bow in 2024. In the meantime, stream all 11 seasons of The Walking Dead using a Netflix subscription, and you can check out Lucifer there as well.
